The Devič Monastery (; ) is a

Serbian Orthodox The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian churches. The majority of the populat ...

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

. It was built in 1434 and is dedicated to St Joanikije of Devič. Devič was declared Monument of Culture of Exceptional Importance in 1990.

History

The founder of the monastery is Despot

Đurađ Branković Đurađ Vuković Branković ( sr-Cyrl, Ђурађ Вуковић Бранковић, ; 1377 – 24 December 1456) served as the Serbian Despot from 1427 to 1456, making him one of the final rulers of medieval Serbia. In 1429, Branković was form ...

, who had it built in memory of his daughter. In the Ottoman census from 1455, the monastery is mentioned as the church of the

Theotokos ''Theotokos'' ( Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are or (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations are "Mother of God" or "God-beare ...

(dedicated to The Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple). During Turkish occupation the monastery was pulled down, but the church and the site with the grave of St. Joanikije was reconstructed, and was painted in 1578. The monastery was destroyed and burnt down during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1941 by forces of the

Albanian Fascist Party The Albanian Fascist Party (, or PFSh) was a fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcibl ...

, the prior Damaskin Bošković was killed, and Italian troops disassembled the two big bells and took them away in 1942. It was rebuilt in 1947. Devič was a target of the

Kosovo Liberation Army The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA; , UÇK) was an Albanians, ethnic Albanian separatist militia that sought the separation of Kosovo, the vast majority of which is inhabited by Albanians, from the Republic of Serbia (1992–2006), Republic of R ...

(KLA) in 1999. The monastery was vandalized and all food and two cars were stolen. The marble tomb of the patron saint St.

Joannicius of Devič Joannicius, also Ioannikios (), Joanikije (), Ioannikiy (), Anikiy (), Ioannykiy (), Onykiy (), may refer to: * Joannicius the Great, 8th-century Byzantine Christian saint * Joannicius of Ochrid, Archbishop of Ohrid (13th century) * Joanikije I, ...

was desecrated by local Albanian in June 1999. Since then it has been under the constant protection of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

KFOR KFOR may refer to: * KFOR (AM), a radio station (1240 AM) licensed to Lincoln, Nebraska, United States, * KFOR-TV, a television station (channel 4 analog/27 digital) licensed to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States, * KFOR-TV (Nebraska), a defun ...

troops. It was the target of new attacks by Albanians in the most serious

unrest in Kosovo On 17–18 March 2004, violence erupted in Kosovo, leaving hundreds wounded and at least 19 people dead. The unrest was precipitated by unsubstantiated reports in the Kosovo Albanian media which claimed that three Kosovo Albanian boys had drown ...

on 18 March 2004 when the nuns were evacuated for safety reasons by Danish KFOR troops. Following that the monastery was pillaged and torched. The

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodox Church#Constit ...

received confirmation of the monastery's plight the following day from the

United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo The United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Привремена административна мисија Уједињених нација на Косову, Privremena administrativna misija Ujedinjenih na ...

(

UNMIK The United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (; sr-Cyrl-Latn, Привремена административна мисија Уједињених нација на Косову, Privremena administrativna misija Ujedinjenih na ...

Gallery

File:Devič Monastery_interior.jpg, Burned and desecrated interior of the Devič. Note UÇK graffiti in the church apse. File:10-Devic.jpg, Burned monastery lodgings covered in snow File:11-Devic.jpg, Burned monastery lodgings covered in snow

Notes

References

External links

Video
of the burned, destroyed and desecrated Devič monastery complex *

* ttp://www.kosovo.net/pogrom_march/devic1/page_01.htm Photo story on destruction of Devič, ERP KIM, March 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Devic Christian monasteries established in the 1430s Serbian Orthodox monasteries in Kosovo Cultural Monuments of Exceptional Importance (Serbia) Medieval Serbian architecture Medieval Serbian sites in Kosovo Destroyed churches in Kosovo 15th-century Serbian Orthodox church buildings Skenderaj Cultural heritage of Kosovo Monuments and memorials in Kosovo Churches destroyed by arson Patriarchate of Peć

History

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links